In a digital video recording environment, the number of programs that can be recorded at any one time is determined, or limited, by the number of tuners and/or by the available system resources of a recording device. For example, a digital video recorder with two such tuners can receive and record two programs simultaneously. Only after a user of the recording device requests or schedules three programs for recording at the same time will the recording device inform the user that the third program can not be recorded without one of the other two programs being canceled.
Typically, the user is prompted to resolve a conflict by either canceling their last recording request, or choosing to cancel a previously scheduled recording request. However, it can be difficult to determine the basis of a recording conflict when having to scan through an extensive list of available channels and programs to try and locate which programs have been previously scheduled for recording at the time indicated as being a conflict. Further, some systems will only identify to a user one other scheduled program recording as the conflict when the user schedules another program to be recorded. The user may then cancel the conflicting scheduled program recording only to be informed that a conflict still exists. This seemingly arbitrary program recording conflict resolution process further frustrates a user trying to determine the basis of scheduled program recording conflicts.
Accordingly, for program recording systems, there is a need to provide an indication of scheduled program recordings and recording resource availability so that program recording conflicts can be avoided. Additionally, there is a need to provide a user-friendly interface from which a user can quickly determine and resolve a program recording conflict.